Copies of these books are on reserve in the Engineering Library (or should be
soon). Please take a look at them if you want more information or are having
trouble with a topic. One of these books covers SPICE, but I will hand out
additional material on SPICE in class.

Class Website:Some material such as the class syllabus, homework
assignments, etc. will be available through the Web at www.engr.uky.edu/~ee461g/. Please
use this at your convenience and let me know if there is anything missing. The
most important feature of the website is that homework assignments and due dates
will be posted on the web and it is the studentís responsibility to check the
web for newly posted assignments.

Objective:To provide students with the working knowledge required to
analyze and design basic transistor and diode circuits. Transistor circuits
include MOSFET (metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor), BJT (bipolar
junction transistors), JFET (junction field effect transistors), and BiCMOS
(bipolar CMOS) technologies. Large Signal, Small Signal, and Frequency responses
are covered.

The following competencies should be imparted to the students:

1. Draw the characteristic curves for the diode, BJT, JFET, and
MOSFET, to identify regions of operation, and to draw the linear circuit
approximations for each region.

2. Complete a load line analysis.

3. Draw the circuit schematic of common rectifier circuits and
draw the diode currents for the circuit with a resistive load.

4. Draw the circuit schematic of the common transistor amplifier
configurations.

5. Know advantages and disadvantages of common the transistor
amplifier configurations.

9. Use commercial simulation tools (such as SPICE) to analyze
circuits that include semiconductors.

SPICE:Students are expected to have a working knowledge of
circuit simulation software (SPICE). Most homework will contain a SPICE
assignment. Some basic principles related to the use of semiconductor devices in
SPICE will be covered in class, and some tutorial handouts will be given. The
college currently supports B2Spice which is available in the PC labs
and will be used by the instructor for classroom examples and homework
solutions. Although students may use any version of SPICE, B2Spice is
recommended to maintain consistency among the class. A student version of B2Spice
may be obtained from Beige Bag Software, Inc., 279 E. Liberty, Ann Arbor, MI
48104-2120, Phone: (734) 332-0487, Fax: (734) 332-0392, Info@beigebag.com, http://www.beigebag.com for $55.00, or $45.00 without the manual which is not really
needed.

Grading:

QuizzesShort quizzes covering material from the previous
week's class will be given randomly once a week. Quizzes will be at the
beginning of class and anyone arriving after the quiz begins will not be allowed
to take the quiz. As long as you come to class and are there on time, you should
do fine. Students should bring paper, pencil or pen, and a calculator to class
each day.HomeworkHomework will be given approximately once a week and
will be due on Thursday, one week after it is assigned. Homework assignments and
due dates will be posted on the class web page and it is the students
responsibility to check this site. Homework may be turned in after class or by
3pm in the instructor's office.
-LATE HOMEWORK will NOT be accepted. Students are encouraged to work together on
homework as long as each student tries to complete all of the problems on his
own. Everyone must turn in individual homework which will be graded more on
effort than on correct answers. Copying will not be tolerated.ExamsThere will be two mid-term exams and a final exam as
listed in the course outline. The final exam will be comprehensive but will
focus on material covered after the second exam. Any student with an 'A' average
before the final exam may optionally take a homework-like take-home final rather
than the normal final exam.Final GradeGrades will be based on quizzes, homework, two
mid-term exams, and a final exam according to the percentages below. Overall
grades will be scaled to a class average of 82% and assigned to the standard
scale (>90% = A, >80% = B, etc.).

Quizzes
Homework:
Exam 1:
Exam 2:
Final Exam:

10%
20%
20%
20%
30%

Attendance:Students are expected to attend class and be bright and
cheerful with lots of questions. It will be hard to do well in this class
without attending the lectures. It is the studentís responsibility to get
notes and handouts for any missed class and to inform the instructor regarding
excused absences for a missed quiz. Makeup exams for excused absences will be
oral exams given after the normal exam date. Oral exams will not be fun for
either of us, so try not to miss exams. In general, it is the student's
responsibility to inform the instructor and make arrangements for an excused
absence as early as possible.

Student Conduct:Although you may work together on homework, copying is not
allowed. Cheating in any form on quizzes and exams will not be tolerated.
Students are on their honor not to cheat and to inform the instructor if they
witness any cheating, and students will be required to sign an honor pledge
agreeing to this. Classroom activities will be rather freeform -you may ask
questions or make comments at any time, but you should always conduct yourself
in a manner that will not disturb other people in the class.

Final Comment:The primary goal of this class is for you to gain a basic
understanding of semiconductor devices and their use in circuits. I know this
material is not easy, so please come to me if you have any questions or are
having any trouble understanding the material. And donít be afraid to ask
questions in class; chances are that, if you donít understand something, then
other people donít either, and I need you to tell me when itís not making
sense.